As used herein, ‘ringtone’ refers to a sound that plays on a device to alert a user of something, such as an incoming call, a message, etc. In addition ‘ringtone’ can refer to other types of alert tones, such as a ringback tone, which typically is a sound that is played by a service provider to an incoming caller while a communications device is ringing (e.g., in the case of a phone, the ringing that occurs before the phone is answered). Ringtone remixing has become a recent focus of innovation. Existing approaches involve a remixer server, a cellular phone device issuing commands to the server, and a remixed music file sent from the server to the phone, for use as a ringtone. Typically, in the prior art, all remixing functions are performed by a server, and a music file (e.g., a simple MIDI file, or similar variant, with finalized pitch and rhythmic data) is output by the server to the cellular telephone. As an example, US Patent Application Publication US 2004/0106395 A1 assigned to Improvista Interactive Music, Inc., in Campbell, Calif., describes such an approach wherein a phone connects to a remixer server (e.g., directly over the cellular network, or indirectly via a computer on the internet) and a use is able to issue instructions via the telephone interface to the remixer server, the server performs a remixing process, and a music file is sent to the telephone via the cellular network for use as a ringtone. Additionally, a database is described that facilitates the billing process wherein the user pays for the ringtone remixing event.
However, certain limitations and problems are evident in the prior art approaches to ringtone music remixing. For example, advanced remixing functions are limited, such as the ability to remix an individual instrument within a musical piece, e.g., without affecting the other instruments or musical components. Also, the phone is the only method of providing an interface to the user, and thus the user interface is confined to the relatively limited display, keyboard, processing power, etc., of the phone itself, even in situations where the phone is accessing the remixer server via a Personal Computer. In addition, all remixing is performed on the server, and so certain benefits of distributed processing are not available. Very little capabilities are known in the way of video components to the ringtone music, as well as teachings in connection with high-quality audio, e.g., that may be suitable for music listening (e.g., stereo playback, etc.), and therefore containing more quality than is typically associated with ringtone music pieces.
Broadcast music distribution historically has involved the real-time streaming of music over the airwaves using an FM or AM broadcasting channel. Similarly, the Internet has been used for audio streaming of music data in an approximately real time manner. Both of these examples involve steadily sending relatively large amounts of data, and consume relatively large amounts of the available bandwidth. The number of music styles and the amount of bandwidth required to make effective use of these systems have limited the usefulness of these approaches to a broad range of new products incorporating wireless computing resources (e.g., cellular telephones and/or personal data assistants (PDAs)). In addition, the limitations of these approaches to music distribution make it inordinately difficult to enable a node/subscriber unit to share music, either as part of the radio-type distribution of music, or with other node/subscriber units directly, and in particular music that has been authored or modified by a user of the node/subscriber unit.
In the field of the present invention it is difficult to provide high quality audio synthesis in an environment with relatively limited processing resources. Typically high quality audio synthesis may involve a specialized DSP chip that consumes power, and adds significantly to the cost of the overall system. For example, in a cellular telephone that provides MIDI-based ringtones, typically a specialized MIDI DSP is incorporated that may add to the overall cost of development and materials of the system, as well as typically having an adverse impact on the battery life of the product. Furthermore, in many cases such a system may not provide high quality audio synthesis, notwithstanding the specialized DSP hardware.
In addition, prior art approaches to ringtone remixing involve relatively simple loop-based remixing, and do not enable a more sophisticated music creation/remix process that preferably may involve music rules as well as a much greater variety of music that sounds pleasing to the ear.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for creating, modifying, interacting with and/or playing music employing a top-down process, where the systems/methods provide the user with a musical composition that may be modified and interacted with and played and/or stored (for later play) in order to create music that is desired by the particular user.
It is another object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for creating, modifying, interacting with and/or playing music in which music may be automatically composed in a variety of distinct musical styles, where a user may interact with auto-composed music to create new music of the particular musical style, where the system controls which parameters may be modified by the user, and the range in which such parameters may be changed by the user, consistent with the particular musical style.
It is another object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for using pre-existing music as input(s) to an algorithm to derive music rules that may then be used as part of a music style in a subsequent auto-composition process.
It is another object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for creating, modifying, interacting with and/or playing music based on efficient song structures and ways to represent songs, which may incorporate or utilize pseudo-random/random events in the creation of musical compositions based on such song structures and ways to represent songs.
It is another object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for creating, modifying, interacting with and/or playing music in which songs may be generated, exchanged and disseminated, preferably or potentially on a royalty free basis.
It is another object of the present invention to provide systems and methods for distributing, broadcasting, and/or sharing music employing a node-based music generation process, where the systems/methods enable the user to receive (via the node/subscriber unit) and/or author or modify a data file from which the music may be composed.
It is another object of the present invention to enable music data to be broadcast or transmitted over a cellular or other wireless network.
It is another object of the present invention to enable server-based, client-based, and hybrid ringtone remixing capabilities for a portable communications device such as a cellular telephone.
It is another object to provide music remixing capability for a music video piece, wherein a composition algorithm is employed to remix one or more components of the music video piece.
It is another object of the present invention to enable a music remixing capability involving a personal computer interface, e.g., wherein a ringtone is remixed/composed via a PC, and forwarded to a communications device for use as an alert tone.
It is another object of the present invention to enable a music remixing capability wherein an individual component of the music piece may be easily composed anew during a remix process, such as a drum track.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a music-rule based remixing function, that preferably goes beyond simple loop-based substitution processing, and provides a variety of output music results that sound pleasing to the ear.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a data collection/billing and or music group marketing capability for use as part of a music remixing service.
Finally, it is another object of the present invention to enable a dynamic ringtone capability, wherein a music piece may be remixed automatically at each use, e.g., as an incoming call alert tone remixed before each incoming call event.